Monday, October 3, 2016

New Severne Kit and a Comment about the new iSonics

Hi

Sorry for the long break but I have been having computer
problems. Anyway – all is back in
working order now so here is the post about some Severne stuff and a comment or
two regarding the new iSonics from Starboard.

Severne

Severne have taken two models from 2016 and combined the
best characteristics of both to create a new super blasting sail. Great work from the masters. The new Turbo GT combines aspects of the old
Turbo with the Unit I wrote about some time ago.

On paper the 2017 Turbo GT is is one great machine for the non-racing
blaster. It is light, forgiving and
promises to be really fast. All things we enjoy.

My belief is that Severne discovered something when developing
the Unit – they opened a door to new possibilities for improved stability by
moving the power down and forward in the sail and this is what they are offering.
The Turbo GT is one sail I would dearly like to be trying in the new
season.

You will no-doubt have seen these shots on the Severne
website.

A fine looking machine and I
note from the specs that they increase the number of battens and cams as the
sizes increase. Very cool. They have not posted dimensions and weights
but please keep an eye on the site for these.

One nice thing with these pictures and those showing the new
Gators, is the inclusion of the Fox blasting board. It looks absolutely perfect on the water (imo). Where the guys are jumping we catch a glimpse
of the fins the boards will come with.
They too look like proper equipment (you may not need to buy after-market fins – bargain!)

The new Gators look great as well:

No annoying overhanging batten!

The Convert is a sail I would usually ignore (disliking
“intermediate” equipment as I do) but I will bet that this iteration is faster
and more stable than any of us thinks.

The Dacron panel is a master stroke allowing the foil to breathe
slightly for increased comfort and as we keep saying “comfort = speed”. If you believe that Dacron is an old
redundant material just go to the Hot Sails Maui site and see the awesome
products Jeff Henderson makes with the stuff.

I wonder where this particular venue is. Cross shore winds, clear, warm water, nice
accommodation and plenty of shade for equipment between sets. I want to live there!

Speaking of the Fox, here are some perspectives I had not
seen before:

What more can one say.
Perfection!

Starboard

The new iSonic shapes look great as usual. This season they offer the boards in UltraCore
Reflex which results in some crazy light weights.

They have rounded out the tails of the larger
slalom sizes to give more power – a good thing in my opinion.

The previous 114 (my favorite) remains
unchanged and has become the new 117.
They felt that adding a rounded tail would over-do the power for this
size.

Incidentally, the light version of
this board comes in at 6.3kg. Awesome
for a board of this size.

Thanks ChrisI thought that it might be Le Morne - I once stayed on the other side from where the shots were taken. The reason I excluded Mauritius in my mind is because Aussies have so many great spots of their own - why come to Mauritius? Anyway - I learned something here. Another good reason to re-visit Mauritius.RegardsPhil

Its been about 3 1/2 years since I started windsurfing - initially on a quiver of converts. Since then I have moved on to more advanced sails from the Severne line-up but still revert to Converts from time to time and remain stoked about their lightness, versatility and the price:durability of these sails.

Which is why - and as fine machines they are - I wouldn't go for Gators. I would recommend anybody starting windsurfing today, to start out with Converts and work hard to nail every core skill :tacks, gybes both planning and non-planning, chop hops, beach and water starts and even a select number of freestyle moves that are basic extensions of these (body drags, 360s etc).

Then I would recommend moving directly to dedicated apparatus: Turbos/NCX for blasting or Blades to operate in more confused waters - the norm of my homespot: Gallipoli.

I feel the Gator is both pricey and a "jack of all trades master of none"...Once you start gaining core competency progress tends to be very swift (depending on how much dedication and hardwork you put in) and thus one may find the Gators to be somewhat 'soft' after a while.

Incidentally I hear quite often on how innovative the Severne Unit is...except Naish made a similar sail, the Super Moto, now discontinued for some odd reason.

About Me

This blog is all about windsurfing so I will keep everything windsurfing related. I am a retired guy living in one of the best flat water sailing spots in the world. I would classify myself as a good recreational sailor capable of holding my own against any other recreational sailor. Serious racers and national level competitors kick my ass. As explained in the blog the range of conditions and opportunities provided by this place has created a group of avid sailors who spend far too much time sailing, discussing and researching things of a windsurfing nature
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I also run a commercial website at:
http://philrecommends.info/
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This has nothing at all to do with windsurfing but is rather a lifestyle site with tips and recommendations for everyone.